Volume Two: Strength Unknown
by Hope And Justice
Summary: Join Rebecca, Paisley, and Josie as they continue their journey through Middle Earth. Now that the friends are separated, they face challenges they never expected. Helm's Deep, Ents, and Gollum await them in part two of three! Now with more romance! Characters/OC.
1. Chapter 1

**Hope: Look everyone! Volume 2 is here! There are a few things to be discussed first, however. We expect this volume to be very, very different from Volume One. The chapter lengths will vary, and the story itself will be much longer than the first volume! Now Justice, if you would please present our lovely and loyal readers with some insight to this chapter :)**

**Justice: Alright! Well first of all, for all you new readers out there who haven't read our Volume One yet….You might want to do that. ;D Otherwise you probably won't understand what's going on in this story, which is Volume Two. :) As for this chapter…it's a longer one, and it's a Josie chapter. There was a demand for more fluff/romance so there shall be more fluff/romance. xD Yaaaay! Right? …Or not, haha. Anyway, hoped you guys liked the teaser kiss in the last chapter. You guys liked it right? Whether it was/wasn't with who you expected, you guys still liked it, RIGHT? xD Okay I'll stop harassing you now lol. Just know that there will be more romance in the future, and better scenes too.**

**Honor: Hey everyone! So glad that you guys are still with us! We appreciate each and every one of you! Of course, you all know by now that we own nothing except our OCs! Enjoy! And please review!**

* * *

Chapter One: When Josie Met Gollum

It was difficult to see through the heavy fog that covered Emyn Muil. Gimli's description of the area was very accurate. It was truly a labyrinth and the rocks were indeed razor-sharp. The place had a way of making one feel quite disoriented.

Josie sat on the ground, her knees pulled up to her chest as she watched Sam tie his Elvish rope on the rock that would serve as an anchor for the small crew's descent to the lower level of this ''maze''.

She then looked over to Frodo, who was sitting to her left and looking quite down. She gave him a gentle nudge with her elbow. ''Hey,'' she said softly.

Frodo looked at her out of the corner of his eye, but did not speak. Josie had grown used to this. He hardly ever spoke directly to her unless she initiated the conversation, which is something she tried to do often.

''Hey,'' she tried again. Still nothing, but the red head was determined. Slowly she reached over and placed her hand on his. He jumped slightly, but did not pull away.

''Frodo.''

A moment passed.

''...Yes?'' he finally said.

Josie gave a faint smile. ''I just wanted to hear your voice. It's comforting to me...''

She thought for an instant that the Ring Bearer blushed, but could not be sure, and was unable to mention it because Sam came over and unknowingly ruined their little moment.

''It's ready, Mr. Frodo...Miss Josie.''

The trio made their way over to the rock and peered over the edge. The heavy fog made it impossible to see the bottom, which in turn made it impossible to determine just how far up they were.

Josie felt her stomach churn. ''So who is going first?''

''I will,'' Frodo said as he turned his back to the ledge and gripped the rope.

''Please, be careful,'' Josie warned him. ''The fog has made everything so slippery.''

Frodo nodded and then began his descent. The other two watched as he slowly disappeared.

''I guess I'll go next...''

Sam looked at the lady questioningly. ''Are you sure?''

Josie reached into her pocket and touched the Stone of Courage that Celeborn had presented to her in Lothlorien. Immediately, her anxiety lifted and she felt herself grin. ''Positive,'' she replied as she carefully stepped over and grasped the rope.

Slowly she began climbing down, clutching the rope tightly with both hands. Sam soon followed. They had not been travelling long when Sam called down to Frodo. ''Can you see the bottom?''

''No!'' Frodo yelled back. ''Don't look down, Sam. Just keep going!''

Caught in the middle of the exchange, Josie felt as though she were miles above the ground, but the magic from her Stone gave her the courage to keep going.

She looked up and gasped as she saw Sam lose his footing and hit his face on the rocks. A small box fell out of his pack and he shouted for someone to catch it. Josie refused to let go of the rope and as she opened her mouth to say so, Sam's box bounced roughly off of her forehead.

She whimpered in pain and blinked, still slightly alarmed. Lucky for Sam, Frodo was able to reach out and catch the box, but as he caught it, he slipped and began to fall.

''Frodo!'' Josie and Sam shouted in unison. Then there was a _thunk _as Frodo landed on both feet at the bottom, which fortunately wasn't far at all. ''I think I've found the bottom,'' he told his companions.

Sam let out a sigh of relief as he and Josie began scrambling to hurry and get to Frodo. Josie, being closer, was able to reach the dark-haired Hobbit first and she placed her hands on either side of his face.

''Don't ever scare me like that again!'' she exclaimed. Then she released Frodo's face and laughed uncertainly as Sam reached them, muttering under his breath. But Frodo and Josie were too busy peering at the little box that had caused all the commotion to hear him.

''What's in this?'' Frodo asked.

''Nothing!'' Sam responded immediately.

''Whatever it is, it hurt like hell.'' Josie rubbed her forehead where a red mark had begun to form.

''I'm sorry Miss Josie.'' Sam looked ashamed. ''It's just a bit of seasoning. I thought maybe if we was having a roast chicken one night or something...''

Josie stared at Sam, her mouth agape. ''Roast chicken?'' Frodo asked, seemingly amused.

''Chicken...Oh my God, Sam! Now I really want some chicken!'' Josie whined as she wrapped her arms around her growling stomach and leaned against one of the many rocks surrounding them. The male Hobbits seemed to ignore her.

''It's very special, that,'' Sam said as Frodo opened the box. ''It's the best salt in all the Shire.''

Frodo nodded. ''It is special.'' He gave the seasoning back to Sam. ''It's a little bit of home.''

Josie watched them curiously. Sam spoke of the Shire often and she found herself wondering about it more and more. Their homeland seemed very important to them and she wasn't sure why. She had never had a deep connection to her hometown. She had moved away from it for college, and while she missed her family after the move, she didn't miss her actual birth-city.

* * *

As the group set out once more, Josie continued to ponder this and soon became lost in her own thoughts. She followed Frodo and Sam in silence, which was quite unusual for her, and her companions soon caught on to this.

They had started climbing upwards after a while of walking and Josie's silence became unbearable. Her usual rants and spontaneous comments had been a way to ease the tension along their travels and Frodo found himself in need of a distraction. He paused in his climbing and waited for her to catch up. When she reached him, she stopped as well and looked at Frodo with a troubled expression.

''Are you alright, Josie?'' he asked her carefully.

''Hmm..?''

''You're not yourself...You are being strangely quiet.''

''Oh...Well I was just thinking.''

''...I see.'' Frodo was unsure how to ask what she was pondering, without seeming as though he was prying, but as it turned out, Josie shared her thoughts freely.

''I was thinking about this attachment you and Sam have with the Shire...I can't understand it.'' She shifted her weight from one foot to the other. ''I think my world doesn't look at things the way you do here. Most people that live in the 'Other World' don't want to live in their hometowns their whole life. They want to move away and broaden their horizons.'' she paused for a moment. ''I was that way.''

Her tone was sad and Frodo felt bad for her. ''Do you miss the Other World?''

Josie's expression changed then. She appeared scared when her gaze finally met his. ''...I don't know,'' she replied. ''I don't know very much at all anymore.''

Then she began to climb again and Frodo followed close behind. This unusual Hobbit-girl had him feeling a rather odd mixture of emotions. She was interesting...and loyal...and quite pretty, even when she was tired and dirty from travelling. But he couldn't allow himself to think such things. They would both only end up hurt in the end.

* * *

The group eventually came to a stop at a place where they could finally see out into the distance. Far from where they were there was an area that looked as though it was on fire.

''Mordor,'' Sam said plainly. ''The one place in Middle Earth we don't want to see any closer. And it's the one place we're trying to get to...It's just where we can't get.''

Josie stared at their destination. The place simply _looked _evil. ''Are we lost?''

Sam sighed heavily. ''I believe we are. I don't think Gandalf meant for us to come this way.''

The mere mention of the Wizard's name caused Josie's heart to constrict.

"He didn't mean for a lot of things to happen, Sam...but they did."

"What are we going to do?" Josie inquired to nobody in particular. Frodo suddenly appeared to be in pain and he quickly sat down upon the rocks, breathing heavily.

Sam remained where he was, but the concern for his friend was evident. "It's the Ring, isn't it?"

"It's getting heavier," Frodo admitted.

Josie sat down close to Frodo, but the rocks made it impossible for her to get to where he was. "And you were worrying about me...You're the one that has to carry that damn thing."

"What food have we got left?" Frodo asked.

Sam pulled something out from his pack. "Well let me see...Oh yes, lovely. Lembas bread. And look! More Lembas bread." Josie gave a bittersweet chuckle. To her the Elvish bread had no real taste, and a cake-like texture. But it was dense and only one bite filled her stomach, so she tried not to complain about it.

Sam broke off a piece for each of them and Josie ate hers quickly. "I don't usually hold with foreign food, but this Elvish stuff, it's not so bad."

Josie felt herself smile at Sam's optimism. It was very difficult to stay positive in a time like this, and she was glad that Sam was there. Someone else that cared about the Ring Bearer. Someone else that was devoted to helping him.

"Nothing ever dampens your spirits, does it, Sam?" Frodo commented to his friend.

Thunder rumbled in the distance and Josie glowered as she wiped her mouth.

"Those rain clouds might."

* * *

It was absolutely horrid when the thunderstorm struck, and it did indeed dampen _all _of their spirits. Frodo, Sam, and Miss Josie were all huddled together beneath the biggest piece of rock they could find, but it hardly provided any shelter. The rain was a constant downpour, and even though they were wrapped up in their cloaks, they were still rather cold and wet.

Josie could not see how Sam could sleep in conditions such as these, but honestly the three were very weary. Yet neither Frodo nor Josie were able to relax enough to get some sleep and they sat huddled closely to one another shivering all the while.

Sam's head had fallen over onto Josie's arm and he was snoring quite loudly. The Hobbit-girl rolled her eyes. "At least _someone _is getting some sleep."

Frodo smiled. "You should sleep too."

"I can't..." Josie admitted tentatively. "I'm thinking too much."

"Is something troubling you?...If you don't mind my asking," The Ring Bearer replied awkwardly.

"I'm just thinking on what we were talking about earlier. About the Shire. I've decided I would like to visit it one day...Maybe even live there if I can't get back home."

Frodo turned and looked in Josie's direction and found their faces rather close together. They were so close he could actually see the raindrops dripping from her eyelashes. And in such close proximity, he could see just how dark blue her eyes really were. He had to force himself to look away. He reminded himself that he couldn't think of her as anything other than a friend and loyal companion. If she were to get too close...

"Frodo, did you hear me?"

He must have been quiet for some time because he had not heard her at all. "No, I'm sorry. I was thinking as well."

"I asked if you heard that breathing sound, but obviously you didn't, so it was probably just my mind playing tricks on me. Stupid rock maze." Her teeth were chattering as she spoke and Frodo risked one more glance at her. She looked so tired and he shook his head slowly.

"I think you need to sleep."

"We both do."

"I'm alright." Frodo seemed as though he was debating something in his mind. "You can rest your head on my shoulder if you wish." There couldn't be any harm in that.

Josie gave him a tired smile. "Thank you," she responded as she took him up on his offer. She closed her eyes and sleep soon took her, but Frodo did not sleep. Instead he sat there with Josie's head upon his shoulder and listened.

* * *

The rain finally stopped and the trio was able to begin traveling once more. They had been walking for quite some time when Sam just stopped. "This looks strangely familiar."

"It's because we've been here before," Frodo answered. "We're going in circles!"

Josie had been lagging behind and she hurried to catch up. "We're _never_ getting out of this stupid place, are we? I hate it here! It's got me all confused." She quickly glanced around and found a direction that didn't seem so familiar. "Should we try that way?" she asked, pointing.

"What is that horrid stink? I warrant there's a nasty bog nearby," Sam said, changing the subject.

"Oh," Josie began sarcastically. "I thought that was just us." She then marched past the male travelers, deciding that she was going to lead for a while.

* * *

They pressed on for the rest of the afternoon, and Josie's leading did not get them anywhere. Night soon fell, and they stopped wandering and set up camp. Their bodies ached and they barely spoke to one another as they had dinner and settled in for bed. Josie was the first to fall asleep and was sleeping quite well when she was woken up by an extremely loud commotion. Her eyes popped open in an instant and she quickly sat up, narrowly missing smacking her head against a rock. For a moment, she actually believed she was dreaming and rubbed her eyes.

No, this was definitely real. Something had a hold of Sam and Frodo had his sword pointed at that something. She couldn't see what exactly was holding Sam captive so she crawled closer. Whatever it was, it was at Frodo's mercy for the moment.

"This is Sting. You've seen it before, haven't you, Gollum?" Sam's captor made a weird growling/hissing sound. "Release him," Frodo threatened. "Or I'll cut your throat."

Sam was let go of slowly.

The Ring Bearer shifted and as he did, Josie got her first good look at Gollum. At that moment, two things happened simultaneously. Gollum began to sob loudly, and Josie (she just couldn't help herself) let out a scream so loud it could have put a Nazgul to shame.

She pointed at Gollum in horror. "W-what is THAT?"

"This is Gollum..." Frodo explained. "and he has been following us for a while now."

"Go on back to sleep Miss Josie. We'll keep an eye on him," Sam urged.

"Oh no no, there is NO way I can sleep now!" She watched as the other two tied Sam's rope around Gollum's neck. Gollum immediately began to wail. "It burns us! It burns!"

"Oh my God, it _talks_?" Her comment was drowned out by Gollum's yells.

* * *

The assembly of (now) four, set out once again at the first light of dawn. Sam was dragging Gollum by his new Elvish rope-collar and the creature would not stop shouting and crying. "Nasty Elves twisted it! Take it off us!" He looked and sounded so pathetic that Josie could not help but pity him even though he _really _creeped her out.

"Quiet you!" Sam shouted at him, but Gollum kept up his pitiful scene. "It's hopeless! Every Orc in Mordor is going to hear this racket! Let's just tie him up and leave him."

"No! That would kill us! Kill us!"

"It's no more than you deserve!"

Gollum began writhing on the ground and Josie felt her feet move on their own accord towards the creature. She took exactly two steps forward when she heard Frodo's voice. "Maybe he does deserve to die...but now that I see him, I do pity him."

"We be nice to them, if they be nice to us," said Gollum. "Take it off us," he begged.

"Why does he make everything plural?" Josie questioned, but she received no answer.

Gollum continued. "We swears to do what you wants! We swears."

"There's no promise you can make that I can trust."

Josie felt relieved that Frodo was at least making his distrust known.

"We swears," Gollum repeated. "To serve the master of the precious. We will swear on...On the precious!"

Precious...That rang a bell. And the consistent plural form...And the tone...Paisley! For the past two years that they had lived together, when Josie had asked her blonde friend for the television remote, Paisley had cradled the object to her chest. 'It's ours!' she would hiss. 'My precious...' The whole time, Paisley had been imitating Gollum! Josie found she actually missed those moments...

"The Ring is treacherous. It will hold you to your word," Frodo said, bringing Josie out of her memory.

"Yes," Gollum agreed. "On the precious."

"I don't believe you!" Sam shouted as he charged at their captive. Gollum tried to run but his collar didn't allow him to go far, and Sam yanked him back over. "He's trying to trick us! If we let him go, he'll throttle us in our sleep!"

Frodo walked over and stood directly before the newest traveler that had joined them. "You know the way to Mordor?"

"Yes."

"You've been there before?"

"Yes."

Josie felt herself tense up as she watched the Ring Bearer free Gollum from his binds. "So...he's our guide out of here?"

"Yes She-Hobbit! We will leads you out. You travels with the Master of the precious!"

Precious...

She wondered how Paisley and Rebecca were...She wondered _where _they were. She thought of them everyday. Her heart ached along with the rest of her body and she reached for her gift from the Lord of Lothlorien. Unfortunately the Stone did not rid her of her sadness.

* * *

**Justice: Sorry for the long wait everyone, but thank you so much for your patience! We hope you enjoyed Chapter One of Volume Two. :) **

**Special Thanks To: B. Belle, xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx, Element Life, tessastarchild, Garideth, Daydreams Become Realities, GlamourGirl190, shalmarrose, Mariposa of Espana, Ella Logan, DancePikachuDance, NoraHasThePreciousss, and ninjawithasharpswordgirl for all of your reviews for Chapter 15: Part Two and the rest of the other chapters, Glory Bee, Dessuithiel Maethoriel, shalmarrose, LadyNostarielofMirkwood, Scylla's Revenge, Ella Logan, and EnvyIsMy Sin for subscribing to our story, SerenityAngels, xXxWolvesInTheNightxXx, GlamourGirl190, owlsareawesome, NightWriter94, Charlotte DeWinter x, Cutie Kyuubi, 1Daremine, Dessuithiel Maethoriel, shalmarrose, Vorpalkitty, and laurena1234 for subscribing to us, faye50free, NightWriter94, Charlotte DeWinter x, and Mariposa of Espana for listing us as favorite authors, faye50free, Garideth, Sjora, Wikiss, Mariposa of Espana, Ella Logan, and musicalmusa1 for listing our story as one of their favorites. ^^**

**YOU SEE THAT LIST PEOPLE? THAT'S A LOT. I think I'm going to cry lol. The feedback for Volume One has been absolutely wonderful, and you guys have been sending the most amazing, most motivating messages. I KNOW I keep saying this, but you guys only want to make us write even more. We can't thank you enough. And we certainly hope that you'll enjoy the rest of Volume Two.**

**Chapter Two will be posted soon. :) And we're also going to keep updating Volume One with our Writer Commentaries, so feel free to read those. Until next time, cheers! :) **


	2. Chapter 2

**Justice: Hello everyone! Sorry it took this long to update! D: Chapter 2 was supposed to be posted a while back, but real life was kicking us in the butt! Please forgive us? PLEASE? ^^" Anyway…welcome to chapter 2! There were some questions about the format of this volume, so just to let you guys know, it will vary. Some chapters may feature more than one lady, and some will feature only one of them. :) With that said…Honor, please tell the readers about chapter 2!**

**Honor: Here is the first Rebecca chapter of Volume Two! Some things to look out for this chapter: The word "angsty" (well, we recognize it as a word even if nobody else does! ." If you have suggestions we'd love to hear them!), Eomer, some book references, and maybe a cute little moment between Legolas and Rebecca...Who knows? *looks around innocently***

**Hope: Just want to give a quick shout-out to B. Belle, who has given us a really cool pairing name for Frodo and Josie...they shall now be called ''Frosie''! Haha we love that and we thank you! Once again, we only own our OCs! Enjoy :D (PS: Levine says hi! ^^)**

* * *

Chapter Two: Difficult Eomer Is Difficult

It had been three days since Boromir, son of Denethor, had been sent over the Falls of Rauros. Three days of continuous traveling for the Four Hunters. Aragorn served as their leader, with Legolas right behind him. Rebecca had found herself running in the wide space that separated Legolas and Gimli. Suddenly Aragorn stopped and knelt down, pressing his ear to the ground. A moment passed before he said anything and the others had almost caught up to him. "Their pace has quickened," he said softly. "They must have caught our scent...Hurry!"

Rebecca slowed down and turned around, now running backwards. "_Come on, _Gimli," she urged. "Hurry!" Quickly she managed to close the gap between herself and Legolas. They traveled beside one another in silence, both unsure of what to say. Things had changed between them in the last few days and Rebecca blamed Legolas for the new found awkwardness. If he had never said what he did, things might have remained normal between them.

His words played over and over in her mind and gave a slight tug on her heartstrings...How dare he? Their friends were in danger! Middle Earth was in danger! Now was _not _the appropriate time to try and make a romantic connection! And then another thought struck her. What if Legolas wasn't referring to her at all? He had family...and friends...and perhaps a wife as well. She found then that she barely knew anything about the Elf Prince.

The Elleth was so consumed within her own mind that she did not notice when Aragorn halted and leaned over to pick something up off the ground. In result, she ran right into him and fell onto her side, knocking the Ranger over in the process. Quickly Rebecca jumped up and brushed herself off. "I'm so, so sorry Aragorn. So sorry. I really can't believe I did th-"

Aragorn cut her off as he stood back up, clutching a small object in one of his hands. "Milady, please. No harm done." But he seemed irritated nonetheless.

"What have you found?" Legolas asked their leader.

The Ranger looked down as he opened his hand to reveal a small green brooch in the shape of a leaf. "Not idly do the leaves of Lorien fall."

Rebecca's eyes widened as she scanned the ground for anything else that might give them some sort of sign. Off to her right, something sparkled under the sunlight and in an instant she rushed over to it. Most of the mystery object was covered by dirt. Gently she brushed away the debris and as the item was revealed, she gasped. Lying there, completely intact, was one of Paisley's Guardian necklaces. It was the bird. "Josie..." she murmured before crying out for the rest of her group. "Legolas! Aragorn! Gimli! Look what I found!"

The others rushed to her side and stood in a circle around the trinket lying in the dirt.

"...The Lady's necklace," Aragorn said.

"Paisley..." Rebecca whispered. "She must have dropped it," she said a little louder. "The chain is missing."

"Aye," Legolas agreed. "Lady Paisley would not have cast such a gift away."

Becca reached out and picked up the bird charm, cradling it in both hands. A bittersweet reminder of her two friends now rest in her palms. She closed her fingers around the small bird and held it to her heart.

"They may yet be alive," Legolas said, his voice hopeful.

"Less than a day ahead of us. Come!" Aragorn replied as he rushed off.

Rebecca rose to her feet and as she started after Aragorn and Legolas, something moved in her hand. It felt like the fluttering of wings! Bewildered, she released her grip on the charm and stared in astonishment at the tiny crystal bird in her hands. It was flapping its wings and hovering over her fingers. Barely able to understand what was happening, she then watched as it flew up a few feet and into the sunlight. It paused there, the sun shining through it, causing dozens of small rainbows to be cast upon the ground.

The She-Elf was in awe of the beauty of the Elvish magic placed upon the dainty charm, and even more in awe when the bird shattered and hundreds of minuscule pieces of crystal rained down.

* * *

The Four Hunters had now reached a place that overlooked the new land that lie before them.

"Where are we?" Rebecca asked, still slightly in a trance from the bird incident that had happened so recently.

"Rohan, Milady," Aragorn answered. "Home of the Horse-lords."

"Rohan," Becca repeated as she took a few steps forward, using her Elf-eyes to scan the horizon.

"There's something strange at work here. Some evil gives speed to these creatures...Sets its will against us."

Legolas seemed to spot something and he moved further ahead. Rebecca thought she saw something, but couldn't be sure so she followed him.

"Legolas! What do your Elf-eyes see?" Aragorn shouted.

"The Uruks turn northeast...They're taking the Hobbits to Isengard!"

"To Isengard?" Rebecca inquired. "Isn't that where Saruman is? Legolas no! He'll hurt them!"

Legolas turned and faced the Elleth. Hesitantly he placed a hand gently against her cheek. Rebecca's dark eyes closed on their own accord and she instinctively leaned into his touch.

"No," Legolas told her. "The White Wizard shall not harm those important to us. We must hurry!"

And then he ran off, leaving Rebecca standing there, temporarily dumbstruck, the warmth of his hand lingering on her face.

* * *

The morning of the fourth day of their travels came and painted the sky a mixture of red and orange.

"A red sun rises...Blood has been spilled this night," Legolas said to Rebecca as they ran side by side. His statement nearly filled her heart with dread, but a small bit of hope remained. Her intuition told her that Josie, Paisley, and the others were still alive...

They pressed on for a while longer before they heard the sound of horses quickly approaching. Rebecca's heart leaped to her throat as she wondered to herself if the riders approaching were friend or foe. Aragorn motioned for his followers to take cover behind a rather large boulder and they immediately obeyed.

The Riders were soon upon them, and thanks to their hiding spot, the Four Hunters went unnoticed. Then Rebecca watched as Aragorn stood up and walked out into the open.

"Riders of Rohan!" He yelled. "What news from the Mark?"

Becca stared at the Ranger in disbelief as Legolas and Gimli left the hiding place as well. The Elleth felt as though she had no other choice and she sighed as she stepped out with them. Almost immediately they were completely surrounded, and all of the men upon the horses had their weapons at the ready. "Nice going, Strider..."

One of the men rode out into the middle of the circle where the travelers were trapped and spoke to them in a commanding voice. "What business does an Elf, a Man, a Dwarf, and a...Lady have in the Riddermark?" He looked at Rebecca curiously. "Speak quickly!"

Gimli was the first to answer. "Give me your name, horse-master, and I will give you mine."

Aragorn didn't seem pleased with Gimli's response, and Rebecca resisted the urge to roll her eyes. The man dismounted his horse and Rebecca noticed how tall he was. His hair was long and fair and his face was strong and prideful.

"I would cut off your head, beard and all, Master Dwarf, if it stood but a little higher from the ground."

This angered Legolas, and the Elf quickly notched an arrow in his bow and pulled the string tight. "He stands not alone. You would die before your stroke fell."

The Horse-lords all advanced, their spears now nearly touching the Company's faces. Rebecca slowly began reaching for her bow in case they needed to fight their way out, but just then Aragorn stepped between Legolas and the other man.

"I am Aragorn, son of Arathorn. This is Gimli, son of Gloin, Legolas of the Woodland Realm, and the Lady Rebecca, an Elleth from a distant land."

"I am named Eomer, son of Eomund, and am called the Third Marshal of Riddermark."

"We are friends of Rohan," Aragorn continued. "And of Theoden, your king."

Rebecca noticed then, the sudden change in Eomer's expression. He went from angry and proud to troubled and dejected. She automatically knew something was amiss.

"Theoden no longer recognizes friend from foe," Eomer replied as he removed his helmet. "Not even his own kin...Saruman has poisoned the mind of the king and claimed lordship over these lands..."

Eomer's men had withdrawn their spears and for this, Rebecca was grateful, but she wanted answers. Had this man and his men seen Paisley? And if so, where was the Hobbit?

"...My company are those loyal to Rohan. And for that, we are banished. The White Wizard is cunning. He walks here and there, they say as an old man hooded and cloaked. And everywhere, his spies slip past our nets."

"We are no-" Aragorn began, but he was interrupted by Rebecca who was becoming increasingly impatient.

"We're not spies! Forgive me, but you are being so _difficult_!"

"With good reason. It is unusual to see a Lady such as yourself traveling with companions such as these. Pray tell, why are you doing so?"

"Why? Because Paisley's in danger that's why! They are my only chance of finding her...And besides, they're my friends! I want to help them in any way I can, whether it's proper for a lady or not. Those things don't matter."

Legolas placed a hand on Becca's shoulder and whispered something to her in Elvish, which she, of course, did not understand, and it frustrated her even more.

Eomer looked taken aback, but quickly recovered as her words began to sink in. "Who do you speak of?"

"Paisley!"

Aragorn then stepped in to clarify. "We track a party of Uruk-hai westward across the plain. They have taken three of our friends captive."

"The Uruks are destroyed," Eomer told them. "We slaughtered them during the night."

"But there were three Hobbits! Did you see three Hobbits?" Gimli interjected.

"They would be small," Aragorn explained. "Only children to your eyes."

"About this tall," Rebecca put her hand at her waist to indicate their approximate height. "And the girl...she's smaller than the other two." Her voice caught a little on the last part.

Eomer shook his head solemnly. "We left none alive."

Gimli hung his head in dismay. Rebecca felt her throat become tight, but she refused to cry.

"We counted all the slain and despoiled them, and then we piled the carcasses and burned them, as is our custom," said Eomer. "The ashes are smoking still."

"Dead?" the Dwarf asked.

"I am sorry."

Eomer seemed sincere, and Rebecca almost felt guilty for shouting at him.

Almost.

Apparently Eomer _did _feel guilty, for he let out a whistle and called out two names. "Hasufel! Arod!"

Two large horses came towards the companions and Eomer handed one set of reigns to Aragorn and the other set to Legolas.

"May these horses bear you better fortune than their former masters." Eomer walked over to his own horse and placed his helmet back upon his head. "Farewell," he bid them as he mounted his steed. "Look for your friends. But do not trust to hope. It has forsaken these lands...We ride north!"

Rebecca wanted to thank them for the horses, but could not find the words. Instead she and her three friends watched as the Riders of Rohan galloped over the plains.

* * *

Aragorn took the horse known as Hasufel and placed himself upon the saddle. Becca glanced around uncomfortably. There were four of them and only two horses. Her choices were clear. Ride with Aragorn or ride with Legolas. Although she considered Aragorn her friend, she hadn't spoken to him nearly as much as she had spoken to Legolas and Gimli...and things were so damn awkward around Legolas now! Oh, why couldn't she just ride with Gimli? After a brief moment of further contemplation, she let out a sigh and walked over to Aragorn's steed, deciding it would probably be more comfortable to ride with their leader. She stood there and stared at Hasufel, completely perplexed. She had never rode a horse before and truthfully Rebecca was a little scared.

"Lady!" Gimli's voice sounded from behind her. "There appears to be a vacant seat over there with that Elf. I wish to ride with our leader for the moment."

At this point, Rebecca was ready to just walk to their destination, but they wouldn't have let her go alone, and she knew that. She nodded at the Dwarf and it took a great deal of effort to get her feet to move in Legolas' direction, and by the time she reached him Aragorn was already assisting Gimli onto Hasufel's back.

The She-Elf looked at Arod uncertainly. The horse seemed to sense her unease and looked back at her in almost a sympathetic manner. Slowly Rebecca reached out and gently stroked the creature's mane. Legolas brushed past her and leaped gracefully onto Arod's broad back. Becca glared at him and awkwardly climbed up and settled herself into the saddle.

"Lady Rebecca, I fear your words may someday bring you trouble."

She scoffed. "Oh, and you have _nothing _to say after being so quick to point your arrow at Eomer? I fear your impulsive behavior and actions may someday bring you even greater trouble."

"I am merely concerned for your safety."

"Well thank you for your concern, but I'm fine. You're not my father, Legolas."

To this, the Elf had no response, and Rebecca found herself regretting the words as soon as they left her mouth.

* * *

Needless to say, tension was in the air by the time the companions reached the smoking pile of carcasses and dismounted their horses. Gimli instantly went over and started picking through the rubble with his axe. The Elleth could not bring herself to look at the burned corpses so she sat on the ground and buried her face in her hands. She was ashamed of the way she had behaved that day. It had just been such a roller coaster of emotions for her...

Gimli had stopped rummaging and the sudden silence caused Becca to look up. The Dwarf held something small in his hand. "It's one of their wee belts," he said quietly.

Rebecca was too distraught to even cry...something kept telling her everything was okay. And this confused her. The proof was right there in front of her that Paisley, Merry, and Pippin were lost forever, and yet, her intuition continued telling her they were safe. Safer than they had been in quite some time.

Aragorn suddenly kicked a discarded helmet and let out a very angsty cry before falling to his knees.

"We failed them..."

"No Gimli. We didn't fail," Rebecca began. "We...tried our..." But she could not bring herself to finish that thought.

Silence fell over the four of them and Becca stood up, ready to get away from this depressing place, when Aragorn began moving around. His hands ran lightly over the ground. "A Hobbit lay here," he whispered. "And another...and the other."

He stared at the imprints intently for a moment and then spoke again. "They crawled..." He stood up and began walking away from the others. "Their hands were bound..."

Rebecca watched their leader as he continued to follow the tracks the Hobbits had left behind. Aragorn then stopped abruptly and a picked a piece of rope off the ground. "Their bonds were cut." A few more paces. "They were followed..." He began to sprint and Legolas and Gimli followed him while the She-Elf continued to watch in amazement. And then suddenly they stopped at the edge of a dark forest. Aragorn looked down.

"Two sets of their tracks run this way...The third is set apart and goes that way."

Rebecca then hurried over and reached her group in seconds. "Who was separated from the others?" she demanded.

"Their tracks all lead away from the battle, however, it appears the smallest of us all is now on her own...They all made it into Fangorn Forest, but I do not know if-"

"Let's go then!" Rebecca exclaimed. She adjusted her bow on her back, lowered her voice, and spoke directly to Aragorn. "They're alive...I just know it."

* * *

**Justice: Hope you guys liked it! Once again, sorry for updating this late! I know we told you guys chapter two would be out very very soon, we meant to post it sooner than this. ^^" But anyway, thank you so much for reading! I can't believe we're already getting all these wonderful responses for Volume Two, and it's only the second chapter! **

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